The invention relates to a book holder apparatus for holding an open book and particularly for holding a book for reading. While the invention has particular application to a portable book holder for attachment to a school desk it will be understood that the invention has application for other purposes. School desks have a relatively small amount of surface area of several square feet. This area is used to accommodate writing papers, pens and pencils, reference material, calculators and textbooks. The desk space can become very crowded and it is difficult to manage all the writing and reading material on the desk. This invention allows the student to quickly slide or clip on the portable book holder on the edge of the desk. This, in essence, provides additional surface area for holding a book in a vertical plane without using up any of the horizontal surface area of the desk. This provides for a convenient location, on the edge of the desk, to hold a book for reading without using up valuable surface school desk space. The student may refer back to the book at intervals or merely have a number of books held in a number of holders in accordance with the present invention. Many other applications will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The invention has utility for anyone who wants to refer to a book while doing something else. For example, a cook may desire to have an open cookbook held in an upright position for reference while the cook is preparing a meal. Similarly a mechanic may wish to periodically refer to a page of a book while repairing a machine.
The prior art includes various relatively complex book stands. Many of such book stands have relatively large flat bases that are positioned on a flat desk surface. Such units are often bulky and expensive. In addition they occupy too much desk or table space and are not particularly portable. Some students utilize piles of books as a support for a single open book. Such supports aren""t very effective and often result in books falling off a desk even during a class. Such an event may result in embarrassment to the student as well as disturbing and disrupting the class.
It is an object of the present invention to provide apparatus that is portable. Another object of the invention is to provide apparatus that will take up very little space on a surface of a desk or table because it is common to have insufficient space available in the flat surface area on a desk or other work or study surface.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide apparatus that is compact and readily portable.
Still another object of the invention is to provide apparatus that can be manufactured very easily and inexpensively.
It is now been found that these and other objects of the invention may be attained in an apparatus for holding an associated open book on which some indicia appears which includes means for gripping an associated work surface and means for supporting an associated article on which indicia appears, the means for supporting being fixed to said means for gripping.
In some forms of the invention the means for gripping an associated work surface comprises a generally U-shaped clamp dimensioned and configured for engaging an associated generally horizontal planar work surface. The means for supporting may be a first generally planar member. The generally planar member may have an opening formed therein. A substantial part of the generally U-shaped clamp has a surface area that is less than the area of the opening in the generally planar member. The first generally planar member may include at least one rib formed therein. The at least one rib may extend generally perpendicular to the associated work surface when said apparatus for holding an associated open book is installed on the associated work surface. The apparatus for holding an associated open book may further include at least one additional rib formed in the first generally planar member. The apparatus may further include at least one additional rib that extends in generally parallel relationship to said at least one rib.
The generally U-shaped clamp may include a generally planar plate dimensioned and configured for engaging the upper face of an associated work surface, the generally planar plate may have a lip extending away from the upper face of the associated work surface, the lip may be dimensioned and configured for engaging at least, the pages of an associated book supported on the first generally planar member.
The generally U-shaped clamp may include a generally planar plate dimensioned and configured for engaging the upper face of an associated work surface. The generally planar plate may have a lip extending away from the upper face of the associated work surface. The lip may be dimensioned and configured for engaging at least, the pages of an associated book supported on the first generally planar member.
The means for gripping may include a generally C-shape spring clamp. The apparatus may further include a friction slip washer disposed between the C-shaped spring clamp and the rest of the apparatus to allow the apparatus to swivel to any of a plurality of angles with a slight force while attached securely to the associated desk by the C-shaped spring steel clamp.